Firestorm (Vol. II):
Fire and Ice
(Theme: "Last Resort" by Papa Roach)

The story thus far:
As a solar eclipse occurs in several parts of the Multi-Verse, strange goings-on take place. Young Matt (that's me!) learns the truth about himself, and meets Duke and Ranamon, as the dreaded Grievous attacks. Ranamon is injured, and a mysterious foe's plan starts to unfold. As Ranamon heals, plans are made, and enemies and allies reveal themselves.
NOW READ ON…

Chapter 6: Sibling Rivalries

The next day, Ranamon was ready for action. She, Duke and I were about to leave Zora's Domain, when Zola came for us with a message from Princess Ruto.
"Before you go, you need to go see the princess. She would like to talk with you."
"Okay, Zola, thanks for the message," said Ranamon.
When we arrived at the palace, Ruto was already waiting outside for us. Unlike Zola, the Sage of Water had a wide head. "Hello, m'lady," said Ranamon. Duke and I said hi too.
"Hello, Ranamon, gentlemen. Before you go, I have news. Some of our warriors spotted someone trespassing into my late father's tomb. When they were attacked, they saw the trespasser's face. Either someone has made another clone of you, Ranamon, or she has returned from the Void."
"No…she couldn't have…it's inescapable…" From the look on her face, it looked like Ranamon had just seen a ghost.
"Hey, Duke, who are they talking about?" I asked, a bad feeling forming in my gut, which I'm pretty sure wasn't food poisoning.
"Ranamon's twin sister, Calmaramon. Where Ranamon is a sweet and gentle person, Cal is the exact opposite. You think I'm bad when I'm pissed, she's worse."
"Probably has something with the fact that they're HALF GOD…Actually makes me glad I have no siblings."
"This is no time for jokes, Matt. Cal is dangerous, even when she's in a GOOD mood. Ranamon and I almost died the last time she attacked. There's no telling how powerful she is now."
*Gulp*
"Duke, we're going to need help if she attacks. Any ideas?"
"What about…nah…I know…nope…Yeah…no…"
"What about Young Justice? They could help, right?" I suggested.
Ranamon said, "Good idea. I can contact Batman."
Princess Ruto said, "I wish you luck on your journey."
"Come on, guys, let me go with ya'll," pleaded Zola. "I'm tired of missing all the fun."
"Fine with me," I said, "the more the merrier." I was hoping it would actually make a difference.
"Okay, but we need to stop at Kami's Lookout, where my father is staying," replied Ranamon. "We're going to need some supplies."
"Alright, one portal to the Lookout, coming up," said Duke.
"Showtime," I chuckled.

Chapter 7: Majin's Wrath

LOCATION: Hell
"So, Father, ready to escape?" asked Frieza.
When the solar eclipses had started, the many versions of Hell converged into one single, vast dimension. Portals had appeared there as well, allowing various characters to escape. Frieza, his father King Cold, and brother Cooler had just found one.
"At last, we will have our revenge against that accursed Saiyan and his friends," said Cooler.
"All in good time, my son. First we need to get out of here, and into the right universe," responded Cold.
The three Changelings didn't realize that two figures had followed them.
"Buu…" mumbled the smaller of the two.
"I know, dear brother, I know. Would you like to do the honors?" said the taller one, who was, surprisingly, female.
"Did you hear that?" asked Frieza.
"It seems that we've been discovered," murmured Cold.
At that moment, it seemed that all hell broke loose (no pun intended). The being called Buu attacked Cooler from behind, while Frieza was battling with the female. Someone cried out "Death Beam!" and hit Buu.
"Brother!" yelled the female. She ran over to the injured Majin and started to heal him. "Curse this dimension. He can't even heal himself."
"Just who do you think you are?" inquired Frieza.
The female Majin turned to him, a cold look in her eyes. "My name is Lamp.
"But as far as you're concerned, I'm your worse nightmare."

Chapter 8: Fire and Ice

LOCATION: Kami's Lookout
As we stepped out of the portal, I stared in awe at the temple. Kami and another man, who I assumed was Mata Nui, came to greet us.
"Father…I'm glad you're safe," said Ranamon.
"And I, you, daughter."
"Mata Nui, sir, we have bad news. It seems that Cal…" Duke began.
"I know about the situation, Duke. Kami and I have reason to believe that someone freed her. No one can escape the Void on their own, no matter how powerful they are."
He then turned to me. "Is this the boy, Duke? Your other half?"
"Yes, sir. We haven't released his powers, yet."
"Ranamon, if you may? I need a word with Duke and Kami."
"Yes, father. Come, Matt."
We walked into the temple. For something that was probably millennia old, it was in pretty good shape. "Where are we going?" I asked.
"To the Room of Time and Space, also known as the Hyperbolic Time Chamber. I am going to release your inert abilities."
The second we walked into the chamber, I felt heat and cold hit me from all directions. It made me feel queasy. "You'll get used to it," said Ranamon, as my face turned green.
She taught me some basic techniques, like flight, energy attacks ("They're called ki blasts."), and a couple of beginners' moves. As I got into the stance for a Kamehameha, Ranamon walked some distance from me and faced me. "Try to beat me in a beam struggle," she said. She readied a Kamehameha of her own.
We fired at the same time. There isn't a four-lettered word in the English language to show how it felt when the beams collided.
Apparently Ranamon had done this sort of training before, because her blue-cyan beam was eating mine like a spaghetti noodle. "Put some kick into it!" she yelled over the roar of the beams.
Something within me awoke. My Kamehameha started to take a greenish tint to it, and was slowly pushing back hers. As I yelled out in frustration, my beam completely demolished hers. She was lucky enough to dodge it.
She came over to me, some sweat forming on her brow. She said two words to me.
"You're ready."

Chapter 9: Assassin

Back outside, Mata Nui and Duke were finishing their conversation when Ranamon and I walked back. She whispered something to them, and beckoned me over. "Father is going to release your powers," she explained, "seeing as how he's the one who sealed them."
He raised his hand, and set it on my mop of hair. As he chanted in some strange language, I could feel a tingling sensation.

The pit scorpion knew its job well. This wasn't its first kill. It had done several before. All it needed to do was sting the boy.
As it crawled out of its hiding place, it made the bush it was in shake. The man in the hood glanced over at the bush. The scorpion heard him say, "Hmmm…" as the female watched the boy and the other man.
When the man in the hood turned away, the pit scorpion crawled, its target not noticing yet. If it were to be caught, it had an advantage: the scorpion had been experimented on, making it appear that it was just an ordinary desert scorpion.
Before the scorpion could crawl onto the boy's leg, the female noticed it and picked it up. "Huh, I didn't know there were scorpions up here," it heard her say.
As the boy finished, he turned around and saw the scorpion. He looked like he had sat on a nail. "Ugh…I hate scorpions," he said. The pit scorpion took its chance, and jumped onto the boy's hand.
It stung him.

I cried out in pain as the scorpion stung my hand. It felt like I was drowning in molten lava. I quickly swatted it away, my body going numb. The pain was too much.
I blacked out.

TO BE CONTINUED…

PREVIEW:
As Matt hovers between life-or-death, Duke makes a decision that could help him…or kill him. PLUS, A new ally reveals themselves, along with a new foe.
NEST TIME: The Stone of Life